The August lineup of The Criterion Channel includes works by Ringo Lam, James Baldwin, themes of desert journeys, and rock biographical films.
The Criterion Channel's recent surge in restorations represents a significant milestone for the visibility of Hong Kong cinema in the United States, yet—similar to much in film—there is always more to explore. Enhancing their selection of Ringo Lam films, they present an August series featuring previously shown titles such as City on Fire, Prison on Fire, Prison on Fire II, and School on Fire (often considered his greatest work), along with Wild Search, Victim, and Full Alert, which stands out as an essential action film regarding the 1997 handover. Additionally, this month includes retrospectives on the works of Barbara Kopple (Harlan County USA and American Dream), an eleven-film collection focusing on the often-overlooked Julien Duvivier, and three shorts by Neo Sora. Also featured is the succinctly named James Baldwin On-Screen series, which includes I Heard It Through the Grapevine, James Baldwin: The Price of the Ticket, and three short films.
In the themed series, Rock Biopics That Don’t Suck, curated by Bandsplain's Yasi Salek, showcases some of the genre’s most renowned films that are less cringeworthy (including I’m Not There, Velvet Goldmine, 24 Hour Party People, and Control); I particularly recommend The Hours and Times, which I believe captures John Lennon better than any of Sam Mendes' four upcoming biopics. Complementing each other in themes of sweat and sexual tension are Desert Trips and Southern Gothic: the former is particularly appealing for providing a streaming outlet for Antonioni’s regularly underrated Zabriskie Point, while the latter offers a chance to discover Elia Kazan’s Baby Doll, and both series include Wild at Heart. Meanwhile, Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein have curated their own Adventures in Moviegoing.
The Criterion Editions for August consist of Med Hondo’s West Indies, Nagisa Oshima’s Cruel Story of Youth, Luis Buñuel’s That Obscure Object of Desire, Charles Laughton’s The Night of the Hunter, Kasi Lemmons’ Eve’s Bayou, and Douglas Sirk’s Written on the Wind; notable as well is the out-of-print Criterion edition of Carrie arriving together with these titles. For newer films debuting on streaming, viewers can enjoy the remarkable Blue Heron, Mad Bills to Pay (or Destiny, dile que no soy malo), and Cactus Pears, with a restoration of I Heard It Through the Grapevine being accompanied by Ebrahim Golestan’s Brick and Mirror and three anthology films (Quartet, Trio, Encore) based on the works of W. Somerset Maugham. Lastly, notable mention goes to George Armitage’s Miami Blues, a film whose recognition has grown in recent years but still deserves higher esteem.
The complete lineup is available below and more can be found at the Criterion Channel:
24 Hour Party People, Michael Winterbottom, 2002
Amadeus, Miloš Forman, 1984
American Dream, Barbara Kopple, 1990
The American Ruling Class, John Kirby, 2005
Baby Doll, Elia Kazan, 1956
The Beguiled, Don Siegel, 1971*
Brick and Mirror, Ebrahim Golestan, 1965
The Buddy Holly Story, Steve Rash, 1978
Cactus Pears, Rohan Kanawade, 2025
Cape Fear, J. Lee Thompson, 1962*
Cape Fear, Martin Scorsese, 1991*
Carrie, Brian De Palma, 1976
The Chicken, Neo Sora, 2020
Color Me Obsessed: A Film About the Replacements, Gorman Bechard, 2011
Control, Anton Corbijn, 2007
Dream Lover, Nicholas Kazan, 1993
Encore, Pat Jackson, Anthony Pelissier, and Harold French, 1951
Eve’s Bayou, Kasi Lemmons, 1997
La fête à Henriette, 1952
Full Alert, Ringo Lam, 1997
The Hours and Times, Christopher Munch, 1992
I Heard It Through the Grapevine, Pat Hartley and Dick Fontaine, 1982
I’m Not There, Todd Haynes, 2007
James Baldwin: The Price of the Ticket, Karen Thorsen, 1989
Lisztomania, Ken Russell, 1975
The Long Goodbye, Robert Altman, 1973
Love & Mercy, Bill Pohlad, 2015
Mad Bills to Pay (or Destiny, dile que no soy malo), Joel Alfonso Vargas, 2025
Miami Blues, George Armitage, 1990
Nico, 1988, Susanna Nicchiarelli, 2017*
The Night of the Hunter, Charles
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The August lineup of The Criterion Channel includes works by Ringo Lam, James Baldwin, themes of desert journeys, and rock biographical films.
The Criterion Channel's extensive addition of restorations represented a pivotal moment for the visibility of Hong Kong cinema in the United States. However, as is often the case in the film industry, there is always more to explore. Enhancing their lineup of Ringo Lam films is an upcoming series for August that features the previously scheduled titles City on Fire and Prison on Fire.